


let yourself be pulled into an embrace

by Sorahana



Series: Even heroes needs saving once in a while [8]
Category: LazyTown
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Sickfic, injuries, minimal accuracy to maximize hurt, robbie is secretly a softie, sport's not having a good day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-01
Updated: 2017-05-01
Packaged: 2018-10-26 04:53:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10779975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sorahana/pseuds/Sorahana
Summary: Sportacus wasn't having the best of days. Luckily, someone was kind enough to help him in the end.





	let yourself be pulled into an embrace

**Author's Note:**

> so this is a fic for a trade with daggerkid over on Tumblr! They requested unwell Sport having a bad day that ends up with him getting cuddles by Robbie. i might have deviated from the original prompt but i do hope it's still what you envisioned! had a lot of fun with this one!
> 
> as always, please apologize oocness / grammar mistakes

Even when he went to bed at his usual bedtime, Sportacus woke up that morning feeling oddly… tired.

He pushed himself upright instead of flipping out of bed. A slight frown marred his features as he took a moment to test his body. His limbs felt slightly achy, like he just did a round of intense exercise. There was a general sense of heaviness, one that he couldn’t exactly describe with words. A dull pound thudded steadily behind his temples, subtle but noticeable. There was a slight sniffle when he breathed in and he could feel his throat twinging uncomfortably when he swallowed.

Well then, this was slightly disconcerting. Sportacus was used to having complete control over his body. Now it felt like something was happening to it without his consent. He sat there for a moment longer before deciding that whatever it was, he shouldn’t let it affect his day. It would probably clear up by afternoon, he figured.

Sportacus got out of bed, doing some simple morning stretches. Ignoring the dull ache that thudded steadily in his joints, he prepared himself a light breakfast. His stomach just didn’t sit too well at the notion of food, an odd sensation that was slightly discomforting. Though, he couldn’t just skip the most important meal of the day. In the end, Sportacus braved a single apple as well as a glass of orange juice.

While it made his stomach roll uncomfortably for a few minutes, it seemed to have settle down by itself. Putting a smile on his face, Sportacus headed to the door, ordering it to open before he looked down at the town from the platform.

Pulling out his spyglass, he started to survey the area, going from one major spot to the next. Most of the homes looked to be empty, which meant that the kids were outside. He then checked up on the park but no one seemed to be there. Frowning lightly, he tried to locate anyone in the usual places but every single one came up empty.

Sportacus put down the spyglass and took a few steps back at the slight dizziness that washed over him. Once the spell passed, he tried to make sense on what he’d seen. The kids were not at home and yet he couldn’t find them outside. Where could they be, then? If they had been in trouble, his crystal surely would have alerted him by now.

Were they out of the town a trip? Before he could ponder on it, white flashes emanated from the crystal. “Someone’s in trouble!”

Using the telescope once more, he looked around, trying to pinpoint the exact location from the faint images in his mind. Finally he zeroed in on a familiar black and white kitten, who somehow had found itself on top of a tall tree again.

Briefly shaking his head, he wondered idly on how such a small creature could climb that high in the first place. Nevertheless, Sportacus stood back up, peering down at the town from the platform. He could just jump and deploy his glider mid fall but then, he felt that dizziness creeping up, not to the point of disorientation but enough to make his head feel a little heavy.

Suddenly, the thought of free falling didn’t sit too well, both figuratively and in his stomach. He opted to take the normal, safer way by having the platform slowly drop down to the ground. Even that made him slightly lightheaded but he managed to shake it off by the time he was dashing towards the tree.

When he saw the wall, his reflexes caused him to speed up and make a solid jump over it but then, his head felt all funny again and by the time he reached it, the jump lacked the necessary height to clear it.

As such, the edge of his foot got caught and Sportacus was sent tumbling to the ground. He managed to cushion his fall somewhat but the impact knocked the breath out of his lungs. He laid there on the ground, blinking dazedly at the sky before he slowly pushed himself up.

When he put pressure on his left arm, he gasped at the jolt of pain that went through his shoulder. Sitting back down, he gingerly pressed his hand against the sore area. Ooh, he probably landed on it wrongly. That would bruise soon enough, he thought with a wince.

Still, he couldn’t let this stop him from saving the kitten. Who knows how long the little had been stuck up there, crying out for help? Sportacus got to his feet, rolling his injured shoulder slightly as he looked up at the branch. It wasn’t terribly high. A single powerful jump and he’d be able to grasp onto it. The problem would be this slight injury.

Well, he was a hero, wasn’t he? There would be times where he just had to power through whatever problems thrown his way so he could save the day. This was one of those. This little setback shouldn’t stop him from performing his duty.

With that in mind, Sportacus took several steps back so he could have a running start. He dashed towards the tree and with one foot, he pushed off of the biggest root, using it as momentum to propel him upwards. With his dominant hand, he grabbed hold of the branch, pulling himself up till he was within reach of the kitten.

“Hey there little one, don’t be scared,” Sportacus uttered, eyeing the creature who was scampering back from his outstretched hand. Did something else happened to it that it was acting this way? Usually it was calm and docile but he couldn’t ponder on it for long. This branch wasn’t going to hold his weight for long, judging from the ominous cracking.

It would be easier if he could pull himself further but that was out of the question. Sportacus merely tried reaching out for the kitten, wincing each time it jarred his injured shoulder. The pain wasn’t doing any wonders to his headache, now more of a persistent pound than a dull throb.

In the end, Sportacus managed to scoop up the kitten but in doing so, he had to suffer through its response. Small as it was, its teeth and claws were sharp, drawing shallow scratches all over his bare arm when he tucked it closer to his body. Biting back a wince, Sportacus let go of the branch and let himself free fall.

Usually, this sort of drop wouldn’t harm him. He’d land on his feet, ready to spring back and perform flips. For some reason though, his train of bad luck continued and while both of his feet touched the ground, he accidentally placed more weight on one foot, causing his ankle to roll outward.

For the second time in less than ten minutes, Sportacus fell to the ground, managing to land on his right side so the kitten would be safe. Once again, the wind got knocked out of him, leaving him disoriented for several moments. During that time, his hold loosened, allowing the kitten to wiggle free and disappear down the next corner.

Sportacus remained on his back, blinking up at the sky as he waited for everything to stop sloshing about. When it felt like he could move about without feeling like he was trapped in an endless cycle of flips, the hero cautiously pushed himself up, simply sitting to examine what hurt.

Honestly, his body felt like one giant ache right now. His shoulder throbbed, as was his ankle, he noted with a deep frown. Sportacus could tell that bad landing had at least sprained it. He heaved out a deep sigh as his eyes roamed over the scratches all over his left arm, noting that some of them were bleeding lightly.

Well then, he wasn’t having the best of days. That odd unpleasant feeling had only increased, merely making him feel miserable on top of the injuries he sported. How would he have known a simple rescue would end with him all black and blue?

Sportacus let loose another sigh, unaware that the botched rescue had a witness. The periscope had lowered by the time he carefully got to his feet, wobbling slightly from the pain in his ankle and the newest wave of dizziness. He leaned against a nearby tree, head pressed against the rough bark. He breathed in harshly through his teeth before releasing a shaky groan.

Oh, the trip back to the airship would not be fun at all.

Too caught up in his silent misery, he didn’t notice the approaching figure until a hand landed on his shoulder. Sportacus jerked up, his gasp of surprise turning halfway to a yelp when the motion jostled his sprained ankle.

“Woah there Sportaflop, it’s only me,” Robbie’s smooth tone reached his ears. Sportacus looked up to find a rare look of concern on the villain’s face, though that might just be his imagination. Robbie? Showing anything other than annoyance towards him? If only.

“Hey Robbie,” Sportacus gasped out, forcing a smile onto his lips. “What are you doing here…?”

His words trailed off when Robbie pressed the back of his hand against his forehead, eyelids involuntarily sliding shut at the strangely cool touch.

“You’re running a temperature. Honestly, what are you even doing out of bed for? See where that got you.” He tsked, waving at his body, which told him that he had witnessed that embarrassing rescue. Sportacus wanted to ask how but then again, he shouldn’t waste his breath. Robbie had his ways and he really wasn’t feeling his best right now.

Sportacus merely mumbled an ‘oh’ when the ground beneath him did a weird wavy motion. Robbie looked on in mild alarm, barely resisting the urge to sigh in relief when Sportacus opened his eyes once more.

“Sorry if I bothered you, Robbie. I’ll be going back to my ship now,” Sportacus exclaimed, carefully letting go of his support on the wall. Before he could even take his first wobbly step, Sportacus found himself pulled into a loose embrace.

“Sorry,” Robbie bit out at his wince, positioning his arms into a more comfortable position. “You think I’m going to let you go up to that metal death trap in your state? You can barely even walk as it is.”

There were other ways to get up there but none that he actually voiced out loud. He was tired and everything just felt sore and painful.

“Right. You’re coming back to my lair,” Robbie decided. Sportacus managed to turn and look up at him, a small frown on his lips.

“Really, I’m fine. You don’t have to.” The words sounded hollow even to his own ears but Sportacus didn’t want Robbie to dislike him even more than he already was.

The man snorted, mumbled something that he didn’t quite catch before he wrapped an arm around Sportacus’ waist. “Look, I might be a villain but it wouldn’t be fun being one if I didn’t have a hero to go up against. With you in this pitiful state, it’s really cramping my style.”

Sportacus found it a little hard to wrap his mind around Robbie’s explanation. Then he decided it wasn’t worth the energy to argue. At this point, he just wanted to sit or lie down, no matter where it was.

Robbie once again frowned in worry at the lack of a fight. He had expected a little more resistance but the hero must be more out of it than he realized. Seeing him fall over had been amusing at first but the moment he saw his expression wrought in pain, an uncomfortable feeling settled in his stomach. Then he saw the bad landing and knew he just couldn’t turn a blind eye on it.

“Okay, we’ll take it slow. Just… lean on me,” Robbie instructed. Sportacus nodded weakly before they attempted to take the first step. The walk to the lair had been agonizingly long with Robbie doing most of the walking while Sportacus just slowly hopped on his good leg. Robbie didn’t even want to remember the mess that was entering the lair through the hatch but eventually, Sportacus found himself sitting on Robbie’s orange chair.

“Right.” Robbie scrutinized him for a moment. “Take off your shirt.” At Sportacus’ startled look, Robbie spluttered, cheeks flushing slightly. “So I can see where you stupidly got hurt!” The villain scowled at him before he turned around and headed deeper into the lair.

Sportacus watched his retreating form, trying to make sense of Robbie’s intentions. Why was he doing this? Was he really going to help him out? He can’t deny that the man, while a little gruff, had basically supported him all the way to his lair. He wouldn’t expend so much energy if he didn’t mean it, right?

At the very least, he should follow his orders. Sportacus slowly took off his hat, placing it down before he took off his bracers. Taking his vest and shirt off proved to be difficult with his injured shoulder but he managed to do so just as Robbie came back with a first aid kit.

“You could have waited for me,” he spoke with a sharp look, placing the box on the table. “I didn’t want to aggravate your shoulder any more than necessary.”

Sportacus didn’t bother to point out that he was merely following his instructions. Instead, he watched as Robbie bent down, slowly taking his boots off. Peeling the sock away revealed a swollen ankle, the skin purplish and warm to the touch.

“Of course,” Robbie muttered, shaking his head before he stood back up. What happened next was like something he had hallucinated. If he did hit his head instead of his shoulder, Sportacus wouldn’t have a hard time believing it.

His ankle was treated carefully, being propped up and elevated. The scratches on his arm got disinfected and wrapped up with Robbie apologizing softly whenever he winced. Then his shoulder, apparently a whole mess of bruises, got applied with an ice pack that helped with the pain and discomfort. That too was wrapped with some bandages.

All in all, Robbie did a splendid job of patching him up. Sportacus had remained quiet throughout the process, watching in slight awe on how careful and soft his touches could be. By now, he could believe that Robbie really was doing this to help him, a fact that made his heart swell with warmth.

“Thank you Robbie,” he finally said, flashing the villain a genuine smile. Before he could say any further, he shivered, his brewing fever and sitting half naked in a cool lair getting to him. Robbie frowned, mumbled something like ‘stay here’ before he disappeared in his lair again.

It wasn’t long before he returned with what looked to be an oversized sweater.

“Here, try this out. Should be loose enough that it won’t mess with the bandages,” Robbie explained, handing him the sweater. Sportacus just couldn’t believe that he would go so far to help him like this. Robbie could have sent him on his way after he treated his injuries.

“I—thank you once more, Robbie. This is very kind of you…” Sportacus spoke, an almost shy smile on his lips before he was helped into wearing the sweater. The material felt warm and cozy against his achy body. He leaned back with a pleased sigh.

“Yeah, well, you just looked pathetic and I won’t have my rival looking like that,” Robbie replied testily, looking the other way with his arms crossed. Still, he glanced down at the hero, looking like he was contemplating on something.

“You need, uh, anything else?”

“No, you’ve done more than enough. Thank you, Robbie,” Sportacus murmured, eyes slowly sliding shut. Now that his injuries were treated and his achy body got to lay down on something so soft and warm, he felt tired.

Silence descended on the pair for what seemed like forever before his eyes snapped open once he felt something cool plastered on his forehead.

“Don’t want your brain to fry. All those flips must’ve shaken your brain cells loose. I need a functional nemesis,” Robbie explained without being prompted to, scowling when Sportacus flashed him a grateful look. Another beat of silence passed before he heard a hesitant, “Anything else you need?”

Sportacus opened his eyes to find Robbie nervously wringing his hands, looking like he wanted to do something but he didn’t know what. Honestly, he didn’t have to overstay his welcome any more than he should but a thought crossed his hazy mind.

When he was younger, whenever he got hurt, felt sad or was unwell, his Mamma would pull him into a warm, comforting hug, rocking him back and forth as she hummed an old lullaby until he fell asleep. He couldn’t help but think about her and how nice it would feel if he could…

“Can you… hug me?” Sportacus requested before he even realized it. His eyes snapped open once more, finding that Robbie was staring at him, shock present in his features. He felt his cheeks flushing up even more. Oh dear, why did he have to say that out loud.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean—it just helps me out when I feel like this but…” Sportacus sent him an apologetic look. “…you don’t have to.”

The gaze never wavered, almost making him squirm on the chair. Honestly, why didn’t he just keep his mouth shut? Now Robbie was definitely going to kick him out for overstepping boundaries.

He expected all sorts of reactions but truthfully, having him disappear in his lair again, only to return with a large fuzzy looking blanket wasn’t one of them.

“Robbie…?”

“Shut up. The sooner you get better, the sooner I can go back to scheming,” he grumbled, ordering him to make some room. Too stunned to really do anything else, he complied, scooting to one side. Robbie wiggled in, somehow making himself fit before he threw the blanket on top of them.

Once again showing more care than he thought possible, Robbie slowly and carefully wrapped his arms around Sportacus, mindful of his injuries. A lot of things were going through his mind but they were rapidly disappearing the moment he gave into the hug.

Robbie’s hug wasn’t the same as his Mamma’s. It felt more stiff and bony and yet, it gave him a sense of comfort, like it was okay for him to let himself be taken care of for a change.

Sportacus shifted a little closer to Robbie, nuzzling into the crook of his neck. He heard a hitched breath but no complaints were thrown. The hero let out a pleased sigh, feeling his body relaxing. He was getting sleepy the longer he allowed himself to enjoy the warmth and the steady beating of Robbie’s heart.

“Sleep. You’ll be fine.” The voice was so soft that he almost missed it. Sportacus’ lips formed a small smile. He supposed that taking a nap wouldn’t be so bad. Just a little rest to help heal his achy body. Besides, everything just felt so warm and comfortable…

It wasn’t long before he fell asleep. Though, he swore that just before he nodded off completely, he felt a soft touch on his cheek.

Ah well. It felt nice. That was all that mattered.

**Author's Note:**

> sport didn't exactly get better after the nap. thankfully he had a softie who was willing to help his nemesis out just so he could get back to trapping him again. he keeps saying that but everyone knows better


End file.
